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NBD - Rickenbacker 4003/5

Kevorargh

Kevorargh

Supporting Member
Nov 2, 2013
773
1,188
57
West Bethel, Maine
www.kevormusic.com
#1
Well, this is not what I was expecting! Well, in terms of look, it absolutely was. A great look IMO, and the rosewood neck has a interesting figure in the lower right of the first few frets. It doesn’t affect tone or playability.

The sound is interesting - it hints at the classic Rick tone, but it has a really modern growl to it. The switch to get you a classic tone cuts off some low end but still retains that growl. I played along to some classic Uriah Heep and it stood out like a sore thumb, but sat nicely when playing along to Soundgarden and Helmet. With a pick, I played along to Turning Japanese and have a nice accounting of itself. The tone reminds me of a more civilized Warwick Corvette tone, but without that metal clanging that I always had with my Warwick.

Looking forward to putting new strings (the B was deader than a doornail).

A2D55A74-94B2-435B-88BF-1C68A9314B88.jpeg
 
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#4
Day 2 thoughts - I had a chance to run it through a few preamps on my Boss and otherwise play around with it some more. The neck is hard to get used to compared to my 4003 - it is wider (duh), and surprisingly flatter. It is also slower and stiffer because they didn't lacquer it (at least that might explain the slowness). I'm actually finding it a little hard to play.

Getting away from overly processed preamp sounds on my Boss brings out the old Rick tone to a better degree. There is still that modern growl, and it really sounds different than my 4003.

Anyway, new strings for it should be here by next week, and I can properly adjust and intonate it and see how it sounds after that, and perhaps post a video.
 
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#8
How’s the new strings working out?

I nearly bought one, but when I demoed them at the store the B string was always quieter.

I had them adjust pickup height, I fiddled with EQ, no luck. Shame because the walnut one I played had just about the best feeling neck I’d ever held.
 
#9
Hello, everyone! It's been a few months and I thought I would do an update about the Ric.

I have recorded a song with it, and it cut through the mix nicely. The Ric right now reminds me of a Fender P - it sounds kinda crappy on its own, but seems to fit into mixes reasonably well, at last on modern songs.

The two drawbacks to the bass have become very apparent - the string spacing and the pickups. The string spacing is mighty narrow, even compared to the 4003. It requires a different touch and playing style altogether (it requires a different touch and playing style.....). Not huge drawback, but it plays very differently from my 4003.

The pickups are the biggest issue - they sound like ass. The overall tone is plastic, like a notch in the frequency spectrum was deliberately taken out. The growl-on steroids from the bass is ever present, which is why it sounds horrible when playing along to old recordings. Newer, modern recordings, especially heavy rock, sound great because the growl is exactly what you want. It's also really boomy with both pickups dialed in, which is my preferred tone with these basses. Really weird. It comes across like a one-trick pony, which my 4003 is definitely not.

Do they make after market pickups for these basses yet?

I'm keeping the bass despite the drawbacks because it looks great and the sounds and playability aren't really a drawback. I can probably find a workaround.
 
#10
Kevorargh said:
Hello, everyone! It's been a few months and I thought I would do an update about the Ric.

I have recorded a song with it, and it cut through the mix nicely. The Ric right now reminds me of a Fender P - it sounds kinda crappy on its own, but seems to fit into mixes reasonably well, at last on modern songs.

The two drawbacks to the bass have become very apparent - the string spacing and the pickups. The string spacing is mighty narrow, even compared to the 4003. It requires a different touch and playing style altogether (it requires a different touch and playing style.....). Not huge drawback, but it plays very differently from my 4003.

The pickups are the biggest issue - they sound like ass. The overall tone is plastic, like a notch in the frequency spectrum was deliberately taken out. The growl-on steroids from the bass is ever present, which is why it sounds horrible when playing along to old recordings. Newer, modern recordings, especially heavy rock, sound great because the growl is exactly what you want. It's also really boomy with both pickups dialed in, which is my preferred tone with these basses. Really weird. It comes across like a one-trick pony, which my 4003 is definitely not.

Do they make after market pickups for these basses yet?

I'm keeping the bass despite the drawbacks because it looks great and the sounds and playability aren't really a drawback. I can probably find a workaround.
Click to expand...

Best of luck to you. The Ric has 16.5mm spacing at the bridge, the same as Ibanez Soundgear basses. The neck does have quite a flat profile. Hang in there, I think it is a unique take on the five string BEADG bass.
 
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#12
I have several comments on this bass. before it, some background:

My bass history goes this way; first an Ibanez GSR200, then a Squier jazz bass deluxe v, then an Ibanez GSR206, then a Hofner ignition, then a Kala SUB, then an Ibanez sr300. Long story short, I've had mostly cheap basses before getting this piece of art.

The pros: Tone is amazing and I can feel the huge gap between the Ibanez and the Rick. The finish are quite detailed and you can tell why this bass is over 2k (2020 market price). I've never had a pro-level bass so I'm amazed about having this one on my collection.
This might sound shallow, but the looks are amazing, literally every time I post a video or show it to a person there's an immediate response to its beauty. I know the sound is more important than visuals overall but there's nothing wrong with liking some attention, right?

The cons: Since I have been playing Ibanez bass I'm way more used to modern designs than vintage. Comfortability is a forgotten myth for this bass, I really miss the belly cut because its horn is too long and the back of the bass is too flat. On other basses with modern designs, you can ignore that but for long periods, the rick pushes the right side of the chest (for right-hand players).

The 5th string is too unstable. This bass has a steady intonation, I've traveled with it overseas and it didn't lose its intonation. However, the B string just was not well-tuned. I believe that it might be related to the fact to the bass's length. It's really hard to have a balance between good tunning and low tension with the low B. I ended up changing it for high C tuning (EDAGC). I'm really happy with the result.

HUM. OH GOD, THIS BASS IS NOISY. I replaced the cables for coated ones and it reduced the noise; but in quiet environments, I could hear it and it drives me crazy. I did the copper tape screening and it reduces the hum at least on a 70% but it's still there.

Funny fact, I normally use the Bass Whammy and the high octave also picks the noisy so the classical HUM sound gets 1 or 2 octaves high. My GF is not a musician and yet she has pointed to it on multiple occasions.

I have seriously considered to replace the pickups for the Aguilar humbuckers and find a luthier that dares to do the belly cut so it gets more comfortable. But it's so pretty that I don't know if I should modify this beauty. I mean it has its personality so I guess it's easier just to get used to it.

Bonus: I video I recorded with it
 
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#14
LowEndLobster said:
Congrats! I had an issue with a weak B on mine. The Ric megathread pointed me to specific D'addario strings and they are working much better.
Click to expand...

I saw your review on Youtube regarding the Rickenbacker 4003S 5 string, just wanted to say AWESOME!!!! review you did.
I have another quick question, does your 5 string have double truss rods in the neck?
 
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#17
Kevorargh said:
It's also really boomy with both pickups dialed in, which is my preferred tone with these basses.
Click to expand...

AFAIK this normal for a two pickup bass...when both pickups are equal, you get phase cancellation and sort of an unfocused tone.

The solution is to roll one of the pickups off slightly.

You can also adjust the pickup height so one of the pickups is slightly dominant when both volumes are maxed.
 

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